FOREST LAW ENFORCEMENT AND GOVERNANCE EAST ASIA MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE Bali, Indonesia September 2001 MINISTERIAL DECLARATION

Transcription

1 FOREST LAW ENFORCEMENT AND GOVERNANCE EAST ASIA MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE Bali, Indonesia September 2001 MINISTERIAL DECLARATION Countries from the East Asian and other regions participating in this Ministerial Conference: Understanding that forest ecosystems support human, animal and plant life, and provide humanity with a rich endowment of natural, renewable resources; Deeply concerned with the serious global threat posed to this endowment by negative effects on the rule of law by violations of forest law and forest crime, in particular illegal logging and associated illegal trade; Recognizing that illegal logging and associated illegal trade directly threaten ecosystems and biodiversity in forests throughout Asia and the rest of our world; Also recognizing the resulting serious economic and social damage upon our nations, particularly on local communities, the poor and the disadvantaged; Further recognizing that the problem has many complex social, economic, cultural and political causes; Convinced of the urgent need for, and importance of good governance to, a lasting solution to the problem of forest crime; Recognizing that all countries, exporting and importing, have a role and responsibility in combating forest crime, in particular the elimination of illegal logging and associated illegal trade; Emphasizing the urgent need for effective cooperation to address these problems simultaneously at the national and sub-national, regional and international levels; Declare that we will: Take immediate action to intensify national efforts, and to strengthen bilateral, regional and multilateral collaboration to address violations of forest law and forest crime, in particular illegal logging, associated illegal trade and corruption, and their negative effects on the rule of law; Page 1 of 3

2 Forest Law Enforcement and Governance: East Asia Regional Ministerial Conference Ministerial Declaration Develop mechanisms for effective exchange of experience and information; Undertake actions, including cooperation among the law enforcement authorities within and among countries, to prevent the movement of illegal timber; Explore ways in which the export and import of illegally harvested timber can be eliminated, including the possibility of a prior notification system for commercially traded timber; Help raise awareness, through the media and other means, of forest crimes and the threats which forest destruction poses to our future environmental, economic and social wellbeing; Improve forest-related governance in our countries in order to enforce forest law, inter alia to better enforce property rights and promote the independence of the judiciary; Involve stakeholders, including local communities, in decision-making in the forestry sector, thereby promoting transparency, reducing the potential for corruption, ensuring greater equity, and minimizing the undue influence of privileged groups; Improve economic opportunities for those relying on forest resources to reduce the incentives for illegal logging and indiscriminate forest conversion, in order to contribute to sustainable forest management; Review existing domestic forest policy frameworks and institute appropriate policy reforms, including those relating to granting and monitoring concessions, subsidies, and excess processing capacity, to prevent illegal practices; Give priority to the most vulnerable transboundary areas, which require coordinated and responsible action; Develop and expand at all appropriate levels work on monitoring and assessment of forest resources; Undertake the demarcation, accurate and timely mapping, and precise allocation of forest areas, and make this information available to the public; Strengthen the capacity within and among governments, private sector and civil society to prevent, detect and suppress forest crime. Further, in order to give full effect to the intentions of this Declaration, and to proceed with urgency to explore timely implementation of significant indicative actions developed by technical experts at this meeting, we: Page 2 of 3

3 Forest Law Enforcement and Governance: East Asia Regional Ministerial Conference Ministerial Declaration Undertake to create a regional task force on forest law enforcement and governance to advance the objectives of this Declaration; Invite the representatives at this conference from NGOs, industry, civil society and other relevant stakeholders to consider forming an advisory group to the regional taskforce; Decide to meet again at the Ministerial level in 2003 to review progress on first actions to implement these commitments, in cooperation with relevant international partners; Request the ASEAN and APEC countries participating in this Conference to inform the next ASEAN and APEC Summits of the outcome of this Ministerial Conference and to invite their support; Pledge to work to see that the issue of forest crime is given significant attention in future international fora, including by the World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) and the United Nations Forum on Forests, and by the member organizations of the Collaborative Partnership on Forests; Request the G-8 countries and other donors to consider further how they can join in the fight against forest crime, including through capacity building efforts; Encourage other regions to consider creating similar regional initiatives to combat forest crime. Bali, Indonesia 13 September 2001 Page 3 of 3

4 FOREST LAW ENFORCEMENT AND GOVERNANCE EAST ASIA MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE, BALI, INDONESIA FROM 11 TO 13 TH SEPTEMBER 2001 Annex to the Ministerial Declaration Indicative List of Actions for the Implementation of the Declaration I. Actions at National Level Political High-level expression of political will across sectors Legislative/Judicial Modify and streamline laws and regulations Determine law enforcement priorities Develop swift prosecution, judgments and enforcement Strengthen penalties and sanctions against illegal activities Rewards for responsible behavior/motivation Recognized complaints mechanisms w/protection for claimants and due process Independent monitoring (e.g. single organization, cooperative model, etc.) Integration of customary law into formal law Capacity building for legislative, executive and judicial institutions at the local level, including the integration of customary institutions Decentralization Clarify roles, responsibilities, and authorities between different levels of government, private sector, civil society Improve coherence between different laws Improve communication between national/local levels to prevent/detect crime Prosecution and enforcement should remain with competent and capable authorities Systems that encourage responsible behavior and deter criminal/corrupt behavior (e.g. salaries, codes of conduct, morale building) Analysis of /rationalization of multiple/conflicting formal and customary norms and laws Institution and capacity building Education of judicial and law enforcement personnel re forest crimes Improve capacity of forest managers Support interagency cooperation in formulation of coherent policy and procedures Page 1 of 4

5 Annex to the Ministerial Declaration Technology -- Remote sensing, Geographic Information Systems (GIS) -- Cheap log tracking -- Complete chain of custody audit and negotiation systems -- Resource use planning, warning, monitoring, inspection Knowledge, Experience, Skills -- Awareness raising and training -- Local innovations appropriate to circumstances -- Novel detection and enforcement methods -- Intelligence gathering and analysis Rights, Roles, Responsibilities, Rules -- Codes of conduct -- Due diligence re financing, investment Capacity building for legislative, executive and judicial institutions at the local level including the integration of customary institutions Research (for additional details see Section II Regional and Inter-regional Actions) Concession Policy Concession Allocation Develop/implement transparent and participatory approach to concession allocation Develop leasing/contractual opportunities for village/individual households to manage forest resources Develop mechanisms for resolving conflicting/overlapping property rights Concession Management Clear recognition of property rights within approved management plans, including clear identification and agreement of boundaries and demarcation of concession areas, available to all parties Appropriate contractual periods, monitored against performance Raise awareness about community based forest management Institute independent auditing for compliance with terms of concession agreements Protect and develop forest-based livelihood opportunities within concession areas for local communities Build protection for forest-based livelihoods into concession contracts Conservation and Protected Areas Environmental education Involve local authorities in developing conservation programs that benefit constituents/local communities (e.g. water, tourism) Page 2 of 4

6 Annex to the Ministerial Declaration Public Awareness, Transparency, and Participation Consistent provision of accurate, timely information to monitoring organizations Increase public awareness of forest crimes Increase public awareness of opportunities for purchasing forest products from sustainable and legal sources Provide alternative livelihood opportunities for communities (e.g. poachers to tourist guides/park rangers) Registry of business/family interests in timber industry Publication of government budgets, resources, staffing levels and programmes on forest law enforcement Publication of data on forest crimes, including success rates on detection, interdiction, prosecution and conviction Bilateral Actions Transboundary cooperation for protected areas Voluntary agreements for combating trade in illegal timber and forest products II. Regional and Inter-regional Actions Information/expertise sharing Exchange of in-country experts on forest crime, forest law enforcement ( law, comparative assessment on actions) Implementation of comparable systems of criteria and indicators Comparable timber tracking mechanisms and complete chain of custody audit -- Registration of origin and destination (e.g. forest stand to mill) Development of regional network of monitoring systems, including forest crime monitoring Trade/Customs Harmonized customs commodity codes Protocols for sharing of export/import data Complete chain of custody audit and negotiation systems Initiative for improved and timely trade statistics Prior notification between importing and exporting countries Page 3 of 4

7 Annex to the Ministerial Declaration Bilateral Actions Voluntary bilateral agreements to cooperate on issues of combating illegal logging and trade (involving a full range of relevant agencies/institutions, e.g. customs, police, marine, trade) Regain consumer confidence in tropical timber as a commodity Promote the use of certification schemes that are accessible and cost-effective for smaller forest enterprises (e.g. group certification schemes) Research A research agenda for individual and cooperative work on illegal logging, associated illegal trade and corruption in the forest sector Systematic comparative analysis of patterns of regulatory systems and extra-sectoral links Cooperative work on trade statistics and its relation to legal and illegal patterns of movements of forest products Investment context for and links to illegal and corrupt actions Survey patterns in forest crime and related corruption Development of appropriate monitoring tools and their application, policy utilization Decentralization and patterns related to local government Private Sector, communities, NGOs and relation to governments * * * * Page 4 of 4